Ever wonder why people make these things? Me neither.

The following email was written by Victor Smith, who many of you will remember served as an IPS administrator a few years back. Recently, Vic retired from his role as Associate Director of the Indiana Urban Schools Association, which advocates on behalf of the largest urban school districts in Indiana at the Statehouse. 

Vic's perspective on the Indiana Department of Education's announcement of Adequate Yearly Progress is very informative. Dr. White encourages everyone to read Vic's message to get a fuller perspective of the AYP picture:

Friends,

Today, April 15th, I attended the 10:30am press conference given by State Superintendent Bennett in his office to announce the Adequate Yearly Progress results under No Child Left Behind.  These are the results for the 2007-08 school year as assessed by the Fall, 2008 ISTEP tests.

He began by thanking everyone for coming, saying that this was an "important day"  and an "important announcement."  He said we could go through all the documents about who made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), but he would like to talk "about the overarching concerns" prompted by these results:

First, "the results in front of you are not good enough."

Second, "we have to look at ourselves and say we have to get better."

Third, if you look behind all the numbers of AYP, "behind every result is a child."  He said "167,000 students are in schools that have not made AYP since 2003.  This is about children.  We have to quit playing games with the future of our children."

Fourth, on behalf of our children, the "IDOE is prepared to take action" and "to explore every option under NCLB for resources, assistance, encouragement, and consequences."  He said the IDOE "will begin a process of how to do this."  He said we need to "raise expectations and to raise accountability."  He said we "have to have a sense of urgency, not just about Title 1 schools but for all schools, from Evansville to Angola, from Vevay to Gary, to prepare every student for the 21st century."  He said we "have a lot to do here in the Statehouse to build a sense of urgency."  These results show "less than half of our schools are making AYP", and that fact should bring urgency.  He concluded by saying that currently we are having trouble "providing the standards and the rigor for our students that they need to compete."

That was the end of his opening statement.  He then turned to questions from the reporters.  I knew some of the reporters but have little knowledge of how to spell their names, so please forgive me if I have only sketchy and incomplete information about who asked each question.

Abdul asked the first question:  "Is the IDOE ready to go in and take over some of these schools?"  Dr. Bennett replied "We will take nothing off the table.  Our children need and deserve an excellent education." 

Rich VanWyk of Channel 13 said that Dr. Bennett spoke about consequences, but in the past after results have been announced, nothing very serious happens.  Dr. Bennett replied that "we are prepared to apply accountability steps that may have not been applied before."

Leslie Wiedenbrenner (sp?) of the Louisville Courier-Journal, noting that Dr. Bennett's former district did not make AYP and two-thirds of the schools in his former district did not make AYP, asked why anyone would have confidence in his state actions?  Dr. Bennett said he was disappointed in the results from Greater Clark, and if he were still the superintendent there, he would be calling leaders together there for some very serious discussions.  He said over the 17 months of the campaign he shifted from a local leader of the school operations to a broader state perspective.  He said we need to bring a global perspective to local schools to help students compete.

Matthew Tully of the Indianapolis Star said we're not hearing a lot of specifics.  Dr. Bennett, in response, referred everyone to page 7 of the AYP fact sheet which explains the interventions that can be taken with Title 1 School Corporations not meeting AYP.  He mentioned first the Curriculum and Instruction Review and then the available Corrective Actions, specifically mentioning the following:
       1) defer programmatic funds or reduce administrative funds.

       2) replace corporation staff relevant to the district's inability to make AYP.

       3) remove individual schools from the corporation's jurisdiction and arrange public governance/supervision of these schools.

       4) appoint a receiver/trustee to assume the administrative duties of the corporation.

He said he hopes we don't have to do these things.  He added, "we will be taking a look at these options.  We need a sense of urgency." He concluded by saying that schools know that "this is a department of high expectations."

Kelly from Fort Wayne asked what the time period would be for these decisions, 90 days? a year?  Dr. Bennett replied that they are still evaluating the options, but "there is a sense of urgency."

Andy asked whether there is a point where Dr. Bennett would feel disappointed if the schools don't change.  Dr. Bennett replied he expects change.  He said "some schools are getting it done."  Also, he said there are many schools that missed AYP in only one category.  They are different from schools missing multiple categories.  He said "we will adopt a bold and aggressive yet thoughtful timeline."

Abdul asked about the schools Dr. Bennett had referred to that had missed AYP several years in a row.  Dr. Bennett replied that they would be looking at those schools, but schools in all 292 districts "need to get better."  He said we need to take a real look at improving statewide.

Leslie Olsen of Channel 8 noted that only three districts in Marion County made AYP.  She said those districts will say they need additional resources and "the support of parents."  What, she asked, would you do differently?  Dr. Bennett responded by saying that the first thing he would say is that "we won't make excuses.  Excuses must stop at the schoolhouse doors."  He said that "some schools can get this done." He noted that three schools are featured in the press release for making AYP despite great challenges.  These three are Hosford Park Elementary in Gary, Lakeside Elementary in Indianapolis, and Christel House Academy in Indianapolis.  He said we need to "increase our commitment to children to get this done."  He said reforms are needed but that "we've created a culture where reforms are not taken seriously."

The next question was: How will you know that your actions have worked?  He said we would measure schools each year.  

Then he was asked if there are options he would prefer.  He said all options are being studied.  He then said "reform is no longer a convenience centered operation."  

Next, a reporter noted that the discussion of consequences so far has pertained to Title 1 schools, and he asked if there would be any consequences for non-Title 1 schools.  Dr. Bennett said he didn't see a great distinction here between the two groups, saying "I'm not even looking at the separation between Title 1 and non-Title 1."  The reporter followed up by asking, "Can you use these same options with all schools?"  Dr. Bennett said, "That's what we are evaluating."  He said the state has put the bar up and that he wants to uphold these standards, saying "this is a personal passion for me."

Leslie then asked:  "What percentage of schools will be passing in 2012 with your guidance?"  He said the IDOE action plan goals are for 90% to pass ISTEP and End of Course tests and that 25% will achieve well in Advanced Placement courses and AP tests.  He said if our schools are successful, "this is not about Tony Bennett", but it's about the achievement of students.

The final question was:  With PL221 results coming out soon as well, was Dr. Bennett worried about mixed messages coming to schools based on the messages of two different systems.  Dr. Bennett responded by saying that we have mixed messages already, especially in the Statehouse.  He said, "We have people here in the Statehouse lobbying to have less than 180 days of instruction."  He said the IDOE tried to quicken the consequences of PL221, but that bill is not moving and there are people in the Statehouse that do not see the urgency of improving PL221.  Thirdly, he said there are people in the Statehouse trying to cap the number of charter schools.  He concluded that there are a number of mixed messages, but we have to "enable our children to be successful."

With no more questions from the reporters, he thanked everyone and closed the conference.

That is the record of what I heard at the press conference.  These are things I did not hear at the press conference:

He did NOT say:  The people of Indiana should take careful note that under NCLB, the expectations to meet AYP                     
                          have gone up for each subgroup from 64% passing to 72,6% passing English and 71.5% passing math.
                          (This information was in the press release but was not mentioned by Dr. Bennett verbally.)

He did NOT say:  These more challenging standards mean that many schools not making AYP have actually improved but not to
                          the level of the tougher benchmark of 72% passing.

He did NOT say:  This means that for any school with 30 special education students, 22 or 72.6% must pass the English/language 
                          arts test and 22 or 71.5% must also pass the math test.  This includes mildly mentally disabled students who 
                          nearly all take the regular ISTEP and have historically passed at the 5% level.  That is a tall order.

He did NOT say:  Any school with 30 ESL students must have 22 (72.6%) passing the English/language arts test.  This is an
                          extremely high expectation, especially knowing all ESL students have taken the regular ISTEP test for three years 
                          now even if they are new to the US, including Level 1 and 2 students who by definition are just beginning to 
                          understand English.

He did NOT say:  Larger schools have more subgroups and more chances to fail which is a factor in why high schools are failing at
                          a higher rate than elementary schools.

He did NOT say:  The federal AYP system is extremely controversial nationwide and reauthorization hearings begun 
                          in September, 2007, could not get off the ground.  

He did NOT say:  A national consensus has emerged that the fixed targets of AYP should be replaced by a "growth model" which
                          will measure the improvement of all students in the school.

He did NOT say:  A bipartisan resolution from 11 Republicans and 9 Democrats authored by Republican Eric Koch was passed by
                          the 2007 Indiana House of Representatives saying, among other points, "that the Indiana General Assembly requests
                          the Congress of the United States to authorize appropriate methods of assessment for students who are not proficient
                          in English and of students with disabilities."

He did NOT say:  Even schools making the 90% goal set by Dr. Bennett's IDOE Action Plan will not make AYP starting in 2012-13 and 
                          2013-14 because the goals set by Congress will move higher and higher until the goal of 100% is reached in the
                          2013-14 school year.

He did NOT say:  Lowell Rose in his famous "Grim reaper" essay dated July 28, 2003 explained the inevitability of universal AYP 
                          failure, saying "Some may avoid the grim reaper for some time, but the outcome is certain from the start."  No school
                          can get 100% passing on grade level standards when the Roundtable set the cut scores to show "solid academic
                          achievement."  There will always be a few with special circumstances that won't make it, even in the best schools.

These points, of course, can easily be dismissed as excuses.

Dr. Bennett is enthusiastically verbalizing the script envisioned by the creators of NCLB:  use growing AYP failures to establish momentum toward major reform, including transitions to charter schools or privatized school reforms.  At the national level, NCLB lost so much credibility that House Chairman George Miller of California famously said in 2007 that No Child Left Behind was one of the worst brands in the political arena.  That is apparently not true in Indiana in 2009, where it is being used to push a broad reform agenda without any mention of the flawed nature of AYP scores. 

Urgently needed reforms for many in Indiana include full-day kindergarten and better ESL programs.  These apparently are not what Dr. Bennett has in mind when he talks about reform.  He has opposed the House budget increasing funding for full day kindergarten to $86 million from the current $58 million.  On ESL, he has endorsed throughout the legislative session the Governor's budget cutting ESL programs from $7 million to $3 million.

Today's press conference produced brief stories of two to five sentences tonight on Channels 6, 8 and 13 in Indianapolis.  The lead sentences sent the message:  
        Channel 6:  "A bleak progress report on Indiana schools was issued today.  Half failed to make federal benchmarks."
        Channel 8:  "Only half of Indiana's schools passed federal standards."
        Channel 13:  "Half of Indiana's schools failed to improve this year."
No context.  No details.  No hint that the measurement system is controversial.      

Schools are improving, but the message is not getting out.  The most recent example is that four-year graduation rates went up from the Class of 2007 to the Class of 2008, moving from 76.4% to 77.8%.  Dropout rates went down from 11.9% to 10.3% in the same years.  The IDOE made no announcement of this improvement.  Modest gains can easily be dismissed as "not fast enough."

Dr. Bennett has the bully pulpit, and he is using it.

The AYP stories in tomorrow's newspapers will be harsh.

Vic Smith

vic790@aol.com